1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to image forming apparatuses, image forming methods and computer-readable storage media, and more particularly to an image forming apparatus which is provided with a function of forming images on recording media such as paper having different sizes, an image forming method for forming images on recording media such as paper having different sizes, and a computer-readable storage medium which stores a computer program for setting setting information for use by such an image forming method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Image forming apparatuses include printing apparatuses, copying machines, facsimile machines, composite apparatuses having multiple functions, and the like which are provided with at least a function of printing an image on a recording medium such as paper. Of such image forming apparatuses, there is an image forming apparatus having a construction which enables papers of a plurality of different sizes to be set simultaneously. In the case of the image forming apparatus having such a construction, a user can specify a paper size to be used for printing data and instruct the printing, depending on the size of the data to be printed, such as characters and images, the kind of the data to be printed, and the user's needs. For example, in the case of a printing apparatus, the user specifies the paper size to be used with respect to the printing apparatus from a host unit such as a personal computer. In the case of a copying machine, the user specifies the paper size to be used from an operation panel of the copying machine.
The need for the printing using different paper sizes is increasing due to expanding work on the international scale and the increasing varieties of printed materials. For example, when creating a document in a first country for use in a second country, the document may be printed on a paper size which is commonly used in the second country but not in the first country. In addition, when the user acquires a PDF file from a Web site on the Internet, there are cases where the printing can only be made on a paper size which is specified by the Web site. Accordingly, it is becoming increasingly important to be able to print on various paper sizes.
However, particularly in an image forming apparatus which is frequently used, the paper set in the image forming apparatus easily runs out. For this reason, when the user instructs the printing to the image forming apparatus, the paper having the paper size specified by the print instruction may have run out in the image forming apparatus. When the paper of the specified paper size has run out, the print job is interrupted and the printing must wait until the paper of the specified paper size is supplied and set in the image forming apparatus.
In addition, when different paper sizes are set in the image forming apparatus in a state where the paper of each paper size is accommodated within a corresponding cassette, and the number of cassettes that may be set in the image forming apparatus is small, the possibility that the cassette which accommodates the paper of the specified paper size is not set in the image forming apparatus when the print instruction is sent to the image forming apparatus increases. When the cassette which accommodates the paper of the specified paper size is not set in the image forming apparatus, the print job is interrupted and the printing must wait until the cassette which accommodates the paper of the specified paper size is set in the image forming apparatus.
When the paper of the specified paper size runs out in the conventional image forming apparatus, the print job is interrupted and the printing must wait until the paper of the specified paper size is supplied and set in the image forming apparatus. In addition, when the cassette which accommodates the paper of the specified paper size is not set in the image forming apparatus, the print job is interrupted and the printing must wait until the cassette which accommodates the paper of the specified paper size is set in the image forming apparatus. For this reason, there was a problem in that it is impossible to carry out the printing efficiently.
Moreover, since the printing using the specified paper size cannot be made until the paper of the specified paper size is supplied or the cassette which accommodates the paper of the specified paper size is set in the image forming apparatus, the user or the operator must quickly supply the paper of the specified paper size or set the cassette which accommodates the paper of the specified paper size. As a result, there was a problem in that the load on the user or the operator is large.
Furthermore, when a plurality of print jobs are generated sequentially and one print job is interrupted, the subsequent print jobs must wait until the interrupted print job ends. Hence, there was a problem in that the processing efficiency of the sequential print jobs is extremely poor.
When the paper size specified by the user is not available in the image forming apparatus, the user may wish to print on another paper size which is available in the image forming apparatus. But in this case, the user must cancel the interrupted print job and then issue a new print instruction which specifies another paper size or, instruct a change of the specified paper size with respect to the interrupted print job, and then restart the printing. Consequently, the load on the user is large in that various operations must be made by the user, and there is a problem in that the printing cannot be made efficiently. Particularly when one print job is cancelled in a state where a plurality of print jobs are generated sequentially, the subsequent print jobs will be executed first, and the reinstructed print job will be executed thereafter, thereby causing a delay in executing the reinstructed print job. In addition, even if another paper size is specified, there is no guarantee that this other paper size is available in the image forming apparatus, and the same situation described above will occur and the same operations described above will be required if the paper of this other paper size is not available in the image forming apparatus. In this case, it is even more difficult to carry out the printing efficiently.